


The Problem With Having a Heart - Ironstrange

by InkInMyFingertips



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Boys In Love, Dates, Domestic Fluff, Everyone is back though, Fluff, Happy Ending, M/M, Post-snap, Stephen being a soft dom is my life, Superfamily (Marvel), cuteness, lots of fluff, soft bois, sub-plot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-16
Updated: 2019-04-16
Packaged: 2020-01-15 00:44:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 14,845
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18487807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InkInMyFingertips/pseuds/InkInMyFingertips
Summary: The biggest issue that Stephen Strange has with Tony Stark isn't Tony at all. It's the heart in his chest. Because all things be damned, Stephen knew he could've done a better job setting it in, and can't stand the scars he sees when he catches Tony without a shirt on.ORTony doesn't really have a heart anymore, but he can still feel, so he doesn't care. He actually thinks it helps him cope with all the panic and insanity, not having a fluctuating heart rate. But when his arc reactor starts skipping revolutions like a heart would skip beats, he knows something is wrong.Stephen has a heart, which is suddenly a problem, because every damn time that moron Tony Stark walks into the room, his heart nearly leaps out of his chest, which is even more of an issue as he struggles to keep his cape on his shoulders, too. Stephen's heart aches painfully when Tony seems not to care, and he hates it. He hates Tony. Or at least, he'll pretend he does.





	1. Curse Any Surgeon Who's Ever Laid Eyes on Him

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I'm back again, with another finished story. Wrote this one a while back on Quotev, so I'm gonna move it here and hope y'all like it too.

Stephen Strange hated Tony Stark, we should just establish that right now. Everything about him, the swagger, the arrogance, how stupidly attractive, how mean, how intelligent, how absolutely perfect he was. 

Or at least, Stephen thought he was perfect.

Until he saw it.

He had lazily opened a portal to Tony's lab, face in a book as he munched on an apple. He was coming back to see if Tony had repaired his watch by then.

"Hey, Tony, do you have my watch fixed yet?" Stephen still didn't look up, but in his peripheral vision he could see a shirtless Stark pull himself out of the car engine.

"Oh, hey, Stephen. Yeah, I do," Tony straightened, pulled out a drawer, and sat on the counter as he rifled through it's contents. Stephen looked up, rather uninterested, but froze.

Because he saw it. 

His spellbook tumbled out of his hands and fell onto the floor, and the tail of his cloak saved the apple he dropped. His eyes were wide, his face was pale, his mouth hung open, and he couldn't stop staring. Tony paused and looked up, confused by the book falling. He caught sight of Stephen's shocked expression.

"Buh-" Strange stuttered, as did his brain.

"What? Like what you see or somethin', doc?" Tony chuckled. Even the joke wasn't enough snap Stephen out of his trance to glare, and instead he just sort of stumbled forward, half-levitating, half-walking. "Steph?" Tony repeated.

"Wh- Wh- Who d- did that to you?" Stephen whispered, face going entirely slack as he set a gentle hand on the arc reactor's rim. Tony raised an eyebrow, but answered anyway.

"The heart, huh? Made one in a cave, this is the improved version," he smirked confidently.

"Not the heart, no," Stephen hushed, "the casing. Who cut out the spot?"

"Um..." Brief pain flashed across Tony's face. "My friend Yinsen, why?" He rolled his shoulders back defensively. Strange sat in midair and slowly lowered himself to eye level with the reactor, eyes fixed on the rim. "What's got you riled up?" Tony demanded.

"It's awful," Stephen admitted, bluntly.

"What?" Tony blinked.

"Your skin is so... so stretched an- and scarred, it's all messed up," he traced the edges with his fingertips, making Tony shiver a bit.

"It's fine, I don't see anything wrong with it. Plus, I'd be dead without it," Tony grumbled. Stephen lifted his head enough to glare angrily, before resuming his scan.

"I- it's so... folded. It's not right. I'm the surgeon, and I know when something's messed up, so don't even try that with me. It's so broken up, Tony..." Stephen thought he might cry, so he just floated back to his feet and grabbed his apple from his cloak. "Uh- um... m- my watch," he stammered, blinking.

"Oh, right. Uh, here," Tony absently handed him his watch, now consciously checking out the wounds on his chest. 

"Thanks," Stephen cleared his throat, already looking the other way, and fastened it around his wrist. Taking another bite from his apple, he shoved the cloak off his shoulders, it grabbed the book, and they both disappeared. 

"You did fine, Yinsen. Didn't you?" Tony whispered.


	2. Hard Not To Think About

Stephen could hardly look at Tony again, knowing that under his pressed suits, pristine armor, everything, lay a scarred and patchy sewing job that held his skin together. It made it painful, and he couldn't stop thinking about it, and how awful it was.

Tony had a problem of his own, to be honest, and it was the extremely weird urge to beg Stephen to scrutinize him again. It had been a little awkward in the moment, sure, but Tony really wanted the doctors hands to ghost over his skin again, and to be fixed with that hard gaze. 

And he was gonna get it happen, one way or another, self-destructive or otherwise.

That was how he ended up calling Stephen, gasping through gritted teeth.

"S- Stephen, I- I need you, I g- g- ow, fuuuck~" he groaned, totally detached from the situation. No reply the on the other line, but Stephen materialized next to him, the soft whoosh of his cape notifying the boy on the floor.

"Tony!" the doctor collapsed to his knees, quickly carrying Tony bridal-style to the operating table-ish thing. He made small grumbles about the lack of sterilization going on, and shrugged off his cloak to grab the basic things he needed. "What the fuck did you do, anyway? Wait, don't answer, it'll hurt," Stephen muttered, jogging back, carrying a knife, towel, screwdriver, tape, bandages, a needle, and floss. Tony just tugged on his hair to divert his attention from the big ass hole he'd ripped in his stomach.

"St- St- Stephen," he whispered, hoping this would work out. Washing his hands, Strange immediately dried them, ran over, and hopped onto the table, finding no good position but straddling Tony's hips, who cocked a brow, despite trouble seeing straight.

"It's not my fault you've given me no good angle, I'm not happy sitting on your hips either, just don't struggle," Stephen rolled his eyes, blushing, but focused. Gently cutting off any truly decimated skin, he mopped up as much blood as he could. Doing his best to keep his hands from shaking, he cleaned the tip of the screwdriver on his shirt, and gently poked a small hole in Stark's skin, using gentle fingertips to hold the wound together. 

Tony moaned softly, and Strange winced. He hated seeing him in pain. Using his teeth and other hand, he threaded the floss through the needle, and pushed it through the hole. Frowning slightly, he grabbed a pen and held the cap in his mouth as he drew little dots on the playboy's skin. Capping and discarding the pen, he began threading the needle through the dots, talking to Tony, but mostly himself. "You know, I debated using iron thread cuz you have lots, and I'd even thought it'd be cute to say 'ya wanna be part iron, actually?' But I thought better of it, because your heart scar bothers me so much, and iron doesn't exactly dissolve, but you had floss, which will eventually dissolve. A month, give or take. I don't usually get 4:00 am calls to patch up rich and pretty friends, but I'll do it for the attractively stubborn ringleader of this whole operation, right? I mean, I have nothing else to do but stitch together the upsettingly cute Tony Stark at four in the morning, I suppose. It's even-" he rambled incoherently, just trying to reset his head. But then he was cut off.

"W- what?" Tony choked out.

"What? I'm just saying, I didn't think I'd be spending my night patching you together. I don't sleep anyway, true, but I didn't see myself literally sitting in your lap fixing you up," he shrugged.

"Not that part," Stark croaked. Stephen took a moment to think about it.

"Oh, I called you hot, sorta. Yeah, I guess I did. Well, there's no point lying, considering how the week goes in this timeline, so I should just do one forward thing in my life and tell you I think you're cute. Yeah," Strange muttered, tying up the thread as close to Tony's skin as possible so it didn't slip loose. A small portal opened next to Stephen's head, and he reached in and grabbed a bottle of painkillers. "Two every 12 hours for the next week, got it? And I'll pretend like you might not see me in that week, but when you do, just tell me how you're holding up," the doctor rushed, sliding off of Tony's lap, and walking to go back through his portal when Tony caught his cloak.

"Strange, you can see the whole timeline?" He whispered. The doctor paused and nodded, still not facing Tony. "Am I going to lose anyone else in this timeline?"

Stephen Strange's heart broke.

"I'll do anything to make sure you don't," Strange spoke soft and slow, breathlessly.

"Will that work, Stephen?" Tony pleaded.

"It will, yeah. I promise you," Stephen hopped through the portal quickly to avoid anymore questions, cloak flowing majestically behind him.

Tony just sort of sat there, staring at the place the taller boy had been. He felt all fluttery, and set a gentle hand on his arc reactor. It buzzed happily, and Tony felt sick to his stomach, but in a good way. He just sat on the table, the place where Stephen's hips had been seated against Tony's skin stung oddly, as if something was missing. 

Having heard the clatter, a sleepy Peter Parker stumbled into the lab, yawning.

"Hey, Mr. Stark, what's with all the noise? It's like, four- holy shit, what happened?" Peter finally opened his eyes, and noticed the big cut on Tony's chest.

"Don't worry, kiddo, I got Stephen to fix it," Tony shrugged, pulling a jacket over his shoulders but not zipping it up.

"Stephen... That's Mr. Dr. Strange, right?" Peter came closer, eyes carefully tracing the spot.

"Yeah. He's real talented, but you need to go to sleep, okay?" Tony stepped out of the chair, and scooped up Peter, and carried him over to the couch. Laying him down and seating himself, he sighed happily as his kid snuggled his face into his thigh and fell asleep.

But Tony just couldn't stop thinking about Strange. From his odd mystique to his amazing hair to his jawline to his intellect to his bone structure to his talent to his magic and his smile, everything about Stephen was amazing, and Tony just wanted to obey him.

He wanted to drop a mug, and have Stephen push him to the ground and force him to clean it up, before kissing him fiercely and reprimanding him for it. Tony wanted to be slammed against the wall, but only by Stephen. Stark was always in charge, no doubt. But for Stephen, and every inch of his holiness?

He'd make an exception.

"You look lovesick, sir. Stephen on your mind?" Jarvis' voice commented, volume low enough not to wake Peter.

"I sometimes wish I had a physical form for you just so I could slap you across the face," Tony shot back, though he smiled soft and detached, the way you do when someone makes you happier than you ever thought you could be.

And it wasn't just the kid that made him feel so fuzzy and warm.

It was that stupid, arrogant, hot, dominating, caring, intelligent, awful, amazing boy with the cloak. It was hard not to think about him. Tony smiled, closed his eyes, and drifted off.

Even sleeping though, it was hard not to think about him.


	3. Say What You Wanna Say

Say what you wanna about Tony, but he was definitely hot.

And Stephen couldn't think about him anymore without feeling a little sickly, his cheeks heating up. How amazing would it be, if Stephen could just push him down and... Oh, that's a bad thought, considering you're not even dating him, Stephen. The doctor blushed at his own fantasy and conscious, tapping his foot as he waited for the bus. 

As much as he loved portalling everywhere, he figured it would be a little dumb to portal into the Starbucks in front of people, so he just hopped onto the bus and rested his head against the window to take a nap. His cloak snuggled into his face and curled around his body, and while he'd usually be annoyed, it was kinda comforting to have a hug. 

Sighing softly, he fell asleep.

"Hey there, doc," 

He blinked his eyes open, and was met with a laughing Tony. Stephen blushed and rolled his eyes, elbowing his cloak softly. It unraveled, 

"Hi Tony," he did his best to smile, and keep his thoughts PG-13 at the least. Tony wasn't even doing such a thing, his brain already in a NC-17 area. Of course, his demeanor made sure Stephen didn't know that. "You feelin' okay?" Stephen squeaked, making more room for Tony on the bench. 

"Yeah, definitely," Tony chuckled and pulled up his shirt a little bit, looking down at the spot. "it's doing pretty well. You're talented," he smiled, and Stephen gently reached forward and ran his tender fingers over the stitched-up skin, making Tony shiver pleasurably.

"O- oh, I'm sorry," Stephen withdrew his hand, not having a great concept of acceptable, being a doctor and all.

"No, your hands were a little cold is all. I don't mind," Tony shrugged. Stephen smiled halfheartedly and set his hands back, making a happy electricity shoot through Tony's spine, who blushed as his arc reactor flickered.

"Are you okay?" Stephen asked, noticing the reactor skipping revolutions. 

"I'm fine, it just does that in the cold sometimes," Tony lied, blushing slightly. Stephen loved the pink on his cheeks, and had to physically refrain himself from moving closer and kissing him.

"Oh, y- you're cold? Here, have my jacket," Stephen handed the playboy his zip-up hoodie, now just in a white sweater and his cloak. Tony smiled and pulled it around himself.

"Thanks, I'll be sure to give it back later," Stark said, snuggling into the collar and appreciating Stephen's lavender and peppermint smell. It was so calming to feel like Stephen was right there, he was sure he'd never take the hoodie off. Stephen just chuckled softly, knowing that in this timeline, he won't get the sweater back. "What're you laughing for?" Tony frowned.

"I'm not laughing at you, it's just that uh... well, in this future, you don't give my sweatshirt back, is all," Stephen blushed, but Tony just looked interested. 

"Well, how many futures have you seen?" Stark asked, zipping it up.

"14,000,605, why?" Stephen blinked.

"In how many do I give the sweatshirt back?" Tony chuckled.

"Three. Well, maybe four. In one, it belongs to you, you give it to me, and I never give it back, so four if you're gonna count that," Stephen mumbled, fiddling with the end of his cloak. Tony had never seen a cuter human being in his life.

"Huh. So... how far do you look ahead in this timeline?" Tony couldn't help but be curious.

"I've looked past my own death," Stephen shrugged, "I try not to look, as much as possible. Sometimes I get worked up about things though, and I just have to look to make sure it ends alright," he blushed, seemingly ashamed by the fact.

"Do we up alright?" Tony sorta meant Earth, but Stephen didn't catch that.

"You and I end up more than alright, trust me," he chuckled oddly, eyes glinting.

"Well, what do you mean by that?" Tony cocked a brow, and Stephen immediately went cherry-fucking-red. 

"U- uh, well um..." the bus stopped, and Stephen's cloak slapped his thigh, "I might be inclined to drop life spoilers if you let me buy you caffeine and breakfast, pretty boy," Stephen did his best to flirt, but couldn't stop blushing. It was okay though, because 'pretty boy' got Tony blushing, too. Also, Strange could just blame it on the cold.

The two got off the bus, and walked into the warmth of the Starbucks on the corner. Buying himself a peppermint tea and Tony a coffee and bagel, he walked carefully back to their table, and sat down in one of the big chairs, pushing the stuff he got for Tony towards the billionaire.

"I don't eat breakfast, Stephen! I can live off of coffee!" Tony whined, poking at the bagel.

"I'm a doctor, Tony. And I swear to whatever god there may be, you're gonna eat that bagel or there'll be hell to pay," he snapped cooly, sitting crosslegged in his armchair. Tony just blushed and bit into his bagel. "Good boy," Stephen praised, voice entirely disinterested. Tony squirmed slightly, and mumbled a tiny and detached affirmation as he continued to eat. Sipping on his tea, but sticking his tongue out because it was too hot, he cracked the lid and sat it down on the table, his cloak gently flapping and cooling it down.

"You're not that kinda doctor..." Tony mumbled in between bites of his bagel, testing the waters carefully.

"What did you just say?" Stephen was suddenly alert, making Tony curl into himself. "I might not be a general practitioner, but I'm a fucking neurosurgeon and a functioning adult, I know what I'm doing, and don't you dare fucking question that," he said sternly, straightening slightly.

"Right. Sorry, doc," Tony corrected himself, going back to his food, having learned his lesson.

"It's okay," Strange visibly relaxed, leaning back into his chair, "so what's on your agenda today?" Tony's eyes lit up, and he smiled into his coffee cup.

"Um, let's see. Meeting, although my secretary won't be there, so that'll be a pain in the ass, lunch, by which I mean coffee, some sort of charity thing at night, and then I'll come home, work 'til morning, and then we restart the next day," Tony said matter-of-factly, but didn't realize his mistake until it was too late.

"Excuse me, Tony?" Stephen sat at attention again, eyes alight. He continued before Stark could correct himself. "Alright, that's literally it. I'm taking you to lunch, and making you order food. When's that lunch break?"

"Eleven, sir," Tony immediately responded. 

"Okay, then I'll pick you up at eleven, and we can get lunch. That sleep pattern won't do, but you have the kid, so I'll figure out something to do about that, whether it's chaining you to your bed or giving you sleep aids, we'll figure out. Either way, there's no way you're gonna be destroying your health like that, okay? Are we clear?" Tony nodded quickly, chugging his coffee and wolfing down his bagel. Stephen smirked, satisfied. "Good, I'm glad," he hummed softly, before picking up his cooled tea and nursing it slowly. "So when's that meeting?" Strange smiled into his cup.

"U- uh, thirty minutes," Tony whispered, totally mesmerized by... well, Stephen. Just all of him.

"Well, then get going, puppy. Places to go, people to impress," Stephen chuckled, nodding towards the door. Tony just sorta nodded, and snuggled into Stephen's jacket and walked outside.

"Bye, doc," he smiled.

"Bye, Tony," he slapped his ass on the way out, making Tony turn around and glare. "Yeah, that was me, not the cloak," Stephen grinned mischievously, and Tony just blushed, rolled his eyes, and left. Stephen smiled absently, and took another sip of tea.


	4. Tell Me I'm An Angel

"Hey, I've come to pick up a certain angel named Tony Stark, any clue where I could find him?" Stephen said, pretending to look puzzled as he hovered in midair before Tony. The boy in question scoffed and walked to the door. "Woah, hot stuff, where you going? You've gotta eat lunch with me!" Stephen's voice turned into more of a whine as he jumped out of the air and chased after Tony. "C'mon, okay, game's over, but I'm taking you to lunch no matter what," Strange huffed, jogging in front of Tony. 

"Out of my way, wizard, I'm going to get coffee," Tony chuckled, smiling.

"Okay, first of all; I'm not a wizard. Secondly; I could make you come to lunch with me, it's going to happen no matter what you do," the ravenette mock-frowned, tucking a stray hair behind his ear.

"I just want coffee! I don't need food, Stephen," Tony liked this game. He needed a better name for it than disagree-or-disobey-Stephen-until-he-snaps-at-you-real-attractively, though.

"You can't stop me from taking you to lunch," Strange reminded Tony.

"Oh, right. Uh-huh, try taking me further than the food court," Tony raised his eyebrows in challenge. 

"Sure, then!" Stephen grinned, elbowing his cloak. It wrapped tightly around Tony, and Stephen jumped through a portal, landing the two of them in front of the little pho place on the corner. "Done!" Strange chirped, unraveling his cloak. 

"Fuck, I always forget you can do that," Tony groaned, walking through the door as Stephen held it open.

"See, sleep deprivation hurts your memory, Tony. I'm gonna start making Peter look after your sleep schedule or something, I swear," Stephen said, a bit quieter this time. He was genuinely worried about Tony. He only wanted to protect him. The two sat down, and both ordered chicken bowls, Stephen smiling absently as Tony finished nearly the whole thing. 

"Hey, hypocrite, you've hardly eaten anything," Tony chuckled, eating another bite of his rice noodles. Stephen just shrugged, not wanting to voice the weird and tumbling anxiousness in his chest.

"Sorry, been busy looking at the angel across the table," Stephen recovered smoothly, biting into his chicken and smirking smugly at the bright red boy in the opposite chair.

"You're a mean one, you know that, doc?" Tony mumbled, blushing into the last of his pho. 

"Actually, yeah. I hear it a lot. They call me cold, sarcastic, and unflinchingly careless. I'm not a narcissist, though. I just generally dislike useless people. I hang out with you, and I like you, because I think you're doing something great, and will continue to do great things. You're a good person, and far from useless," he said matter-of-factly, twisting the noodles on his chopsticks. Tony smiled, pink. 

"Thanks, Stephen. For whatever it's worth, I think you're doing good, too," he giggled softly, Stephen's company alone making him feel all warm and fluttery. 

"It's worth a lot, coming from you," Stephen closed his eyes and smiled genuinely, almost like a fucking anime character, and Tony felt his arc reactor stutter just seeing it. It was the most beautiful thing in this god-forsaken world, and Tony would do anything, anything, anything, ANYTHING to make him smile like that again. He felt blessed by such a beautiful creature, and tapped the side of his glasses so that he could save a picture of the moment, smiling of contagion. The waiter walked by, and Stephen looked up.

"Anything else you two need?" she asked, disinterested.

"No, just the check when you get a minute," Stephen said, suddenly calm and standoffish again. Tony was slightly let down by the aura change, but couldn't help but appreciate that he, Tony Stark, was the one able to break Stephen of his hard and severe facade.

"No dessert, huh?" Tony giggled softly, making Stephen's face light back up.

"You don't eat normal food. If you did, I'd have asked for dessert. But you have things to do, right?" Strange checked his watch absently.

"I guess I do," Tony shrugged, rolling his eyes. 

"Here you go," the waitress dropped the check in front of Stephen, who's eyes got wide, and then he just laughed hysterically, cheeks going a little pink.

"W- what?" Tony smiled softly, liking the soft Stephen in front of him.

"W- well," Stephen cleared his throat, "you do know what it means when you're having a same-sex lunch and the waiter puts the check in front of one person, right?" Tony shook his head, making Stephen snicker and bit his lip suggestively. "It means she knows I'd be the top, pretty boy," he raised an eyebrow, making Tony go solid red. 

"N- no, I don't think that's how it works,"

"Shut it," Stephen said sternly with the same smirk on his face. He signed the check and set it on the edge of the table, where she came and picked it up. "If she put it in front of you, I'd be surprised.." he added quietly. 

"Excuse me?!" Tony shot back, a bit too loudly.

"What? Don't deny its true," Strange retorted. Tony shrunk down in his seat and folded his arms. 

"Fine, we'll see how it goes next time," he tried to put on a hard face, but he couldn't help but smile. He couldn't possibly be mad at the man in front of him. A little fluff ball, somehow with a dominant and protective streak, but in two wholly different directions.

"What are you implying?" Stephen asked, leaning against the table almost eagerly.

"I'd like to consider this a date. And if you'd like to go on another one, then we'll see if you are, in fact, a top," Tony said, as nonchalantly as possible. Stephen blushed a bit, and Tony considered this a small victory.

"Fine then, next time," Stephen agreed, knowing damn well that he was going to get the check again. Tony knew this too, but he was fine with it. As long as he got to go out with Stephen, who he considered an angel, again, then he would to totally fine with it. "but I would like to again remind you that it's well known you have billions, and while I am dressed pretty nicely today, I'd be famous if I were half as rich as you, and she put the check in front of my broke ass, because I'd top and everyone knows it," Stephen chuckled, shaking his head. Tony nearly spit out his coffee, but just went red again.

"Say it louder, would you?" Tony mumbled bashfully, fiddling with his sleeve. 

"HEY EVERYBODY, I'M GONNA TOP TONY ST-!" Stephen grinned widely, doing one forward thing in his life, before Tony literally slapped him across the face.

"Watch that," he warned.

"Oh, and what are you gonna do, bottom? Huh?" Stephen sneered, laughing as he teased the brunette. "Your slap is weak, too. Could you BE more of a bottom, really?" he snickered.

"I hate you so much, you know that?" Stark grinned lopsidedly.

"I'm glad, being obnoxious is one my my best qualities," Stephen quipped, making them both laugh.

"I have to get back to my meeting," Tony frowned, watching the waitress give Stephen his card back.

"I know, good thing I can teleport. But uh, hey, before I take you back, I just wanted to say, um..." Stephen blushed. "Well, I've been having a great time these last few days, and jokes aside, I'd love to take you on... y'know, an actual date sometime. Th- that'd be okay, right?" he half-smiled, his eyes twinkling.

"I wasn't joking. I'd love to go on a date with you sometime, Stephen," Tony grinned, tan skin pulling off a light blush.

"W- well, great! Um, how about tomorrow, since you're all busy today?" Strange sighed in relief.

"Sounds good to me," Tony nodded.

"I'm glad. Now, let's get you back to work, pretty boy," Stephen reached across the table and held Tony's hand, and in a whoosh, the two were standing in the lobby. 

"Thanks, Steph," Tony commented, bending his knees a bit.

"Well, of course. Anything to help out the fantastic Mr. Stark," the doctor chuckled, making Tony smile.

"Sounds like something a bottom would say, Dr. Strange," the playboy joked.

"I'll prove otherwise, don't worry," he shot back, winking. Tony blushed and ducked his head, retreating to the meeting hall. "Hey, angel!" Stephen called after him, making Tony turn around. 

Kissing his fingertips, Stephen drew up a magic spark chain, twisting it around in his hands until it formed a little heart. He kissed it again, turning it into lipstick-imprint looking thing, and blew it at Tony, who smiled slightly and caught it, pretending to blow one back with his other hand. Stephen giggled, and with a flap of his cloak, completely disappeared. 

Tony smiled absently, and jogged up the stairs, his face still flushed. He walked into the meeting room, straightening his collar with his fingertips. He sat next to Rhodey at the end of the table, who crossed his arms.

"We said we'd meet thirty minutes beforehand, you're late by ten," he whined, passing Tony a pen. Stark went to uncap it when he noticed his hand. In pink sparkles, a lipstick stain was branded into his palm, making him blush and smile in a totally lovesick way. "Something on your mind? Your cheeks are red," Rhodey commented, disinterested.

"I think I just met an angel," Tony whispered softly, smiling at the sparkles.


	5. You Know It's Not Okay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Go the fuck to sleep, Tony.

Tony was back at it again, working later than he should. He tried his best not to wake up Peter, but the temptation to blast Black Sabbath won over, again. He heard no complaints yet, so all was well for now. He couldn't sleep, and there was no way in hell he would go to sleep with Stephen on his mind. No way, no how, was he letting another human, -- with the exception of Peter and his safety, -- control his mindset.

He thought back to a couple days ago. Purposefully injuring himself, just for the attention. Just for the feeling of Stephen's hands on his skin again...

He scolded himself for thinking about it, and remembered to take a pill. He quickly swallowed it dry and glanced at the clock. He hadn't realized that it was two o'clock in the morning already. He told himself to go to bed, but it hadn't even been 24 hours yet. He would be fine. Plus, it wasn't worth going to bed now. He'd just grab coffee again in like, thirty minutes, and it'd be fine.

That was before Stephen decided to check on him. 

"Well, Stark. Here we are again," he floated upside-down, mid-air, shirtless and in sweatpants with his legs and arms crossed, his cloak fluttering out behind him. He looked exhausted. Tony jumped a bit and turned around, wide-eyed. He mumbled some PG-13 words under his breath. 

"What do you want, wizard?" he asked, running a hand through his hair and looking away from the intruder, turning back to his work. 

"I want you to go to sleep," he responded tiredly. He was now standing and walking towards Tony. 

"Hey, don't you dare lay a hand on me-" Tony tried to argue, but he didn't. Stephen wrapped his arms around him from behind him and rested his head on his shoulder. And he loved it. 

"It's not healthy for you to stay up this late, we've been over this," he mumbled absent-mindedly. In a matter of 0.3 seconds, they appeared in Tony's bedroom. Strange pointed to the bed. "Sleep, now," he rubbed his eyes. 

Tony didn't want to, but Stephen was already sitting in the corner of his bed and motioning for him to lay down in the middle. There was no way he could argue to that. He sat down hesitantly, only to be brought down by an arm wrapped around him. 

Tony, at this point, was everything representing a mess. Stephen's eyes were obviously closed, and every time Tony tried to speak, he was worried about what was acceptable in such a situation.

"Stephen, it's 2:30, is it really worth the three hours of sleep I'll get?"

"Yeah. And even if it weren't, I'm still a little mad you're up this late, and it's rather unwise to make me angry. I have my hands again, you shouldn't make me use them," Stephen sighed, sitting up against the headboard. Tony didn't move. 

"In my defense, I had no clue it was two until you walked in and made me think to check," Tony responded lamely. 

"Not a great defense, bottom-boy," Stephen crossed his legs, and bit his lip in concentration as he distractedly thought about something.

"See, I'm not sure you can make that joke when you're literally sitting in my bed," Tony pointed out.

"Eh, perhaps not. I have to take you to dinner first, and see where the check goes," Stephen nodded, looking out Tony's window. It was a really pretty place, and he ruffled his own hair as he leaned against the headboard and shut his eyes.

"To me, because you have no money," Tony huffed.

"Yeah, right. We'll see about that," the doctor reflexively rolled his eyes, even though they were shut.

"We will," Tony agreed, pausing, wondering if it were okay to gamble this, "you know what, though?" Stephen hummed in acknowledgement. "I don't know if I can sleep now," he admitted.

"Why's that?" Stephen blinked, and looked over.

"My head's buzzing, I can't stop thinking," Tony frowned, sitting up.

"You're hopeless," Stephen groaned, lying down and pulling Tony closer, "I'll distract you, just try to relax," he muttered sleepily, snaking his arms around Tony's waist and pressing his body against the billionaire's back. Tony visibly and physically calmed, melting into the surgeon's touch. He shifted slightly, though, fidgeting. 

Realizing a gentle spooning wouldn't do it, Stephen pressed his face into the nape of Tony's neck and the top of his back, softly mouthing at the skin there, making the shorter boy tense up, and then settle down again. Continuing to gingerly kiss at his spine, he listened for Tony's breath to slow, and then relaxed himself. Teleporting himself out of the position where his arm was trapped under Tony, he gently tiptoed down the hall to Peter's room. He smiled softly at the boy, tucking the sheets underneath him and brushing the hair from his forehead. The corners of Peter's mouth twitched upwards, and he made a happy, quiet sound.

Teleporting again, he appeared back in Tony's room, laying down on the very edge on the bed. He felt cold, like something was missing, and the sheets rustled as Tony grew restless, as well. Teleporting again, Stephen had his arm under Tony again, and he kissed the back off his head once more, snuggled in, and closed his eyes, falling asleep.

He basked in the calm happiness, but something felt off. Not with Tony or anything. Just something in the back of Stephen’s brain, telling him something was... not right, he couldn’t put his finger on it.

It didn’t stop him from snuggling closer and passing out, though.


	6. Before You Go

Stephen had spent all day in the astral plane, smashing things open and breaking walls. This is where I explain what’s wrong here;

Time is falling apart. The very fabric of it is deteriorating, fraying, ripping. All of the people interfering with it had begun to stress it’s fibers, and it couldn’t hold much longer. Thinking ahead, Stephen had to destroy any and all things that would fall through when the rip inevitably happened. Should keep the space continuum less cluttered.

If Stephen’s math was right, — which it always was, — time itself would rip wide open on the next Friday. But he couldn’t do much about that when he had a date with Tony Stark, so he dropped back into his body, and went to go get ready. His head still hurt, but he drank a few painkiller potions and felt okay. 

Changing into something a little nicer, that being a suit, he conjured a rose and teleported to Tony’s door.

He knocked twice, smiling when Tony opened the door.

”Hey, handsome. Wanna go somewhere?”

”You bet,” Tony blushed and took the rose from Stephen, grinning stupidly.

”Okay then, walk with me,” Stephen held out a hand, — which Tony blushed at and accepted, — and the two strolled to the nice, French diner on the corner. “So, it’s Friday. The end of the week. I’m rather impressed you didn’t make me spoil it, but yeah. End of the week, you go out with me,” Stephen winked, pulling out a chair for Tony, who blushed and sat down.

”I hate you, you know that?” Tony huffed, stocking out his lip, making Stephen’s heart literally ache, he was so cute.

”If that were true, you would be going out with me, bottom-boy,” Stephen reasoned, cocking a brow.

”Hey, the check isn’t down yet! We don’t know anything yet!” He narrowed his eyes at the doctor. “Unless you’ve already looked ahead and know, in which case, fuck you,” Tony pouted.

”I didn’t, I swear,” Stephen raised his hands in surrender, eyes wide. Tony relaxed.

”On a more serious note, thanks for making my week so enjoyable. I owe you,” Tony smiled over the top of his wine glass, making Stephen move a hand to his heart to look at the cuteness.

”All that you owe me is a kiss before you go,” Stephen shrugged, sipping his lemonade. Tony nearly choked, impressed by the forwardness.

”Maybe you ARE a top, Jesus,” the billionaire rolled his eyes, but couldn’t help the blushing.

”We’ll just have to see where the check goes, pretty boy. But wherever it does land,” Stephen took another sip, “you still owe me a kiss before you go.”

I’ll give you a lot more than a kiss if you keep talking, Tony thought, until Stephen started giggling.

”Fuck, did I say that out loud?” Tony winced, watching Stephen nod and keep laughing.

Tony’s arc reactor stuttered, and he had to tap it to make it restart. Stephen might literally kill him, no joke.

”You did, I’m afraid. Just order and wait for the check, angel," the doctor singsonged, smiling.

The waiter walked over, and Tony smiled up at him all kiss-ass-ily. It made Stephen's heart go warm. 

"What can I get you?" he asked, disinterested.

"Um, I'll take the filet mignon, please," Tony handed the waiter the menu, before grinning sweetly at Stephen.

"I'll do the french onion soup," Stephen muttered, not even looking at the waiter.

"I'll put those in," he said, taking their menus and retreating to the kitchen.

"Spending me dry, huh, pretty boy?" Stephen teased, taking a sip of his water. Tony huffed and glared. 

"No, because I'm paying!" he whined.

"Yeah, okay. Good luck with that," Stephen grinned.

"Mmhhmm. But in the event that you do have to pay..." Tony smirked and looked away as he gently slid his foot up the bottom of Stephen's pant leg, making the doctor blush, "I promise that I'll pay you with kisses and more, before you go,"


	7. Where The Check Falls

Tony giggled, chocolate on his lips as he and Stephen shared a lava cake.

"You're adorable, you know that?" Stephen smiled absently, taking smaller bites.

"Maybe, but you haven't seen yourself," Tony flirted back, making Stephen chuckle. They finished their cake, and the waiter walked by. 

"Hey, check when you get a chance?" Stephen asked. The waiter nodded and walked away to go get it. "So, gorgeous. Moment of truth, huh? Who's gonna get the check? I mean, me, obviously, but we can play the game anyway," the doctor smirked, leaning in close, making Tony's face go red. He leaned back, satisfied, but before Tony could say anything at all, the waiter dropped the check in front of Stephen, who smiled like the motherfucking Cheshire cat.

"Thanks for dining with us," the waiter smiled professionally.

"Oh, it's been a pleasure, thank you," Stephen locked eyes with Tony, who went bright red. 

"I hate you," Tony hissed, watching the waiter walk off.

"Gee, I'll be sure to tip generously," the doctor said to himself, clicking the pen pointedly.

"You are the worst human I've ever met," Tony huffed.

"Worst astral being, you mean?" Stephen chuckled, signing his name and setting his card in the envelope, before positioning it on the edge of the table. 

Tony just glared, and Stephen blinked back, appreciating the gentle glows in his honey irises. So deep, so pretty. He bit his lip softly, watching the concentration in the brunette's face as he licked his lips deliberately. Tony cleared his throat. 

"My place, right?"

"Hell yeah,"


	8. Allowed

Giggling, Tony nearly dragged Stephen behind him as they walked home, stopping every minute or so to turn around and plant kisses on his face. Stephen would've reminded the shorter boy of his teleportation powers, but rather enjoyed watching this play out. Turns out, his patience is a rather thin thing.

As Tony turned around to kiss him again, Stephen softly but firmly grabbed him by the shoulders, and backpedaled him into a lamppost, smiling as he connected their lips, gently leading the kiss. Tony did little to object, carefully kissing back, chest heaving against Stephen as he savored the moment. It felt perfect, actually.

Eventually breaking for air, Stephen just scanned the other boy dumbly, totally lovestruck, and Tony smiled as he regained his breath.

"You can teleport, right?" Tony sighed.

"What do you take me for, baby?" Stephen chuckled, the two of them quickly disappearing from the moonlit street. Appearing in Tony's upstairs hallway, he laughed softly. 

"Jarvis, soundproof Peter's room," Tony muttered just loud enough for the computer to hear.

"You sicken me, sir," Jarvis commented, making Stephen cock a brow.

"You just... have that?" he felt odd about it, another notch on the belt.

"Nope. Installed it this morning," Tony whispered, winking and pulling a chuckling Stephen down the hallway by his tie.

"You're freakily amazing, you know that?" Stephen muttered, hanging his jacket on the outside doorknob.

"Y... y... thanks," Tony's voice got soft as he locked the door behind them. He shivered slightly, and Stephen caught on.

"No, I mean that. You're funny, intelligent, quick, and quite attractive," Stephen bit his lip and smirked, walking over to Tony and brushing hair from the shorter boy's face, who blushed and looked away in response, before chuckling dryly. "And I'm just another notch on the bedpost, nowhere near as special as you. You're absolutely perfect," Stephen mumbled, lips ghosting over Tony's ear, dryly acknowledging how insignificant he probably was.

"I- I- I want you t- to be more than thaaat~" Tony whined softly, unsure what to do. Stephen's heart swelled, and he did his best to contain it, but couldn't help the grin. 

"I'm glad to hear as much," Stephen spoke lowly, gently advancing on Tony until he pushed him down for a slow and passionate kiss. Tony wrapped his hands in Stephen's hair, making the taller man purr loudly. 

"I'm a- allowed to s- say what I mean," Tony said, shrugging, "and I mean that," he looked up at Stephen through his eyelashes. 

"Good boy, knowing what he's allowed to do, because it's not much else unless I say so," the ravenette chuckled, nipping at Tony's jawline.

"F- fuck, keep this up and you're definitely gonna be more than a notch on the bedpost, you'll break off the whole thing, fucking hell," Tony steadied himself on shaky knees.

"But I have to prove that I'm worth another night first, maybe a year?" Stephen kissed Tony's neck softly, unbuttoning the top few buttons of his shirt so he could taste the skin on the shorter boy's shoulders. Tony moaned slightly.

"Make it f- forty years, Stephen," Tony's soft chuckling turned into loud laughter as Stephen pushed him backwards, grinning dumbly. Tony sat up on his bed, and kept laughing.

"Don't get ahead of yourself, pretty boy," Stephen raised his eyebrows, struggling not to smile, "and only speak when you're allowed,"


	9. Good Morning

Stirring, Stephen blinked his eyes open. The room was dimly lit, and the soft sounds of Tony's breathing calmed him down. Speaking of Tony, the shorter man was curled up against Stephen, who relished the warm feeling of their skin touching. Tony's hair was total mess, and Stephen had to remind himself that Tony was still asleep, so he couldn't floof his hair.

Stephen wasn't a take-you-down kinda person, and he actually didn't usually enjoy coming home with anyone. He preferred going home and cracking open a book, and then putting on sweatpants and going to bed. But he didn't mind waking up in Tony's room, not even a little. In fact, that whole forty years joke? Totally down with it. Of course, he knew that Tony would probably just discard him, even if the brunette seemed to have the time of his life. So he didn't get his hopes up, but then Tony opened his eyes, and smiled his stupidly perfect smile, and Stephen was toast.

"Does fifty years sound good?" Tony asked, somewhat hoarsely, making Stephen grin impossibly wide.

"Fifty years sounds great, yeah," he sighed, snuggling into Tony, who purred happily in response.

"So when are you free for another date, doc?" Tony mumbled into Stephen's chest.

"Y- you'd really keep me around?" Stephen asked, impressed.

"Well, yeah. I couldn't get rid of you, honey," he closed his eyes and nuzzled his face into Stephen's neck, "you're practically perfect in every way," Tony sighed. Stephen chuckled, making the shorter boy realize his mistake. "Hey, I didn't mean to quote Mary Poppins! I mean it, you're amazing," Tony whined.

"I know, I know," Stephen hushed him, kissing the top of his head, "I know you think that,"

"Nuh-uh, it's true," Tony huffed adamantly.

"If I were perfect, you would literally be god of this timeline," Stephen chuckled dryly, but Tony wouldn't let it sit, and grabbed Stephen's face between his hands, squishing his cheeks.

"You mean the fucking world to me. As a friend, as a person doing good in the world, and as, -- if you'd like, -- my boyfriend and partner in crime," Tony whispered, making Stephen blush for the first time in a full day.

"I'm happy to be all of those things, but you mean more to me, because in every fucking timeline I've ever seen, nothing is as beautiful as you," he sighed, "nothing comes close," he did his best to smile, and Tony tackled him into a deep and loving kiss, appreciating it as Stephen's chest buzzed with soft laughter. Flipping them over, Stephen laughed into Tony's mouth, hearing the smaller boy squeak.

"Mmm..." Tony keened softly, tugging needily at Stephen's hair, who drew back.

"Breakfast first, baby," Stephen reprimanded, teleporting off of Tony's lap. The brunette groaned, tugged on a pair of sweatpants, and walked out of his room, down the hallway. Sitting on the kitchen counter, Stephen smiled and set a bowl of cereal in front of one seat.

"Hey, Steph," Tony sat down, and put a big spoonful of cheerios on his spoon and set it in his mouth, looking up at Stephen, nearly making the ravenette choke.

"Yep. I'll be right back, I think I left my cloak downstairs," Stephen said, teleporting out of the room. Tony sighed wistfully, before hearing a loud yawn and then a demanding 'ahem' behind him.

"Peter, hey," Tony smiled awkwardly, watching Peter, -- in a spider-man onesie, by the way, -- hold up Stephen's suit jacket.

"Who'd you fuck?" Peter demanded.

"What?" Tony pretended to be confused.

"Who did you bring home, Mr. Stark?" the younger boy repeated.

"No one," Tony huffed, turning back to his cereal.

"Well, this isn't yours, you're too short for it," Peter explained.

"Hey! I'm not short!" Tony whined.

"You are. And this belongs to a taller person than you, definitely a boy as well, and you're eating breakfast, which..." Peter was doing mental calculus, trying to convict someone, at the unfortunate moment Stephen walked into the room, in all of his just-mesh-shorts-and-a-cloak glory. Peter gaped, and Tony blushed.

"Back," Stephen mumbled through a mouthful of cheerios, smiling at Tony, not noticing the kid.

"Yeah, say hi to Dr. Strange, he came to uh... h- help with the injury I got the other day," Tony tried to explain it away, but his voice kept cracking. Stephen thought he was talking to nobody just as a joke, and therefore, chuckled.

"That can be on itinerary too, but I was under the impression that I was originally here just to fu... oh. H- hi, Peter. Um... Why are you awake this early?" Stephen winced.

"YOU TWO FUCKED!" Peter shouted, dropping Stephen's coat and covering his eyes. "OH MY GOD! I CAN'T EVEN LOOK AT YOU, STEPHEN! AND WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK, ANTHONY? HE HAS A HOUSE TOO!" Peter moved his hands to his hair, tugging at it roughly. "I- I'M NEVER GONNA BE ABLE TO GO ON A MISSION WITH YOU GUYS AGAIN! OOOOOH MY GOD! I WAS IN THE OTHER FUCKING ROOM AND YOU TWO WERE... OH MY GOD!" Peter continued on his rave, Tony and Stephen both just staring at each other. Stephen got a smirk on his face, and Tony shook his head in a 'please don't, don't you fucking dare,' but Stephen dared.

"I'm impressed you didn't wake up. I had to stick my fingers in his mouth," Stephen commented, making Peter literally shriek and jump onto the ceiling.

"EWWWWWWWWW!" Peter whined, banging his head on the roof. The tallest boy panicked, and went to pull him down.

"Peter, you're gonna hurt yourself," Stephen reasoned, pulling him down. Peter yelped and scurried off, jumping from wall to wall, yeeting himself the fuck out of there to probably go text MJ in all caps about how his dad was fucking Stephen Strange...

Or probably vice versa.

"Ughhhhh..." Tony groaned, walking over and collapsing into the ravenette. Stephen and his cloak hugged back, swaying slightly to calm Tony down, and make him chill out.

"It was totally worth it," Stephen chuckled softly, but continued to hold Tony close. The latter just whimpered, and Stephen kept rocking slowly, shushing gently. Peter walked back in, grabbing a pop tart off the counter.

"Nnng..." Tony whimpered, making Stephen pick him up carefully and hold him a little closer, humming gently into his ear.

"Awh, that's so cute..." Peter muttered, pressing a heart to his heart. Tony whipped his head around, and then buried his blushing into Stephen's chest, dying a bit.

"Thanks, Peter. Now, go eat your pop tart elsewhere, please." Stephen smiled, petting Tony's head and rubbing his back gently, making the smaller boy relax and purr as Peter ran upstairs. "Not so bad, see?"

"No, it's bad. It's reeeally bad. He's never gonna let me live this down. Ten years later he'll go, 'hey Mr. Stark, remember that time you brought Stephen home and totally fucked while I was in the other room, and you tried to say you didn't, but then his magical ass walked in and accidentally admitted it?' and then I'll have nothing to say because I'll just hide behind you while you laugh," he huffed, holding tighter onto Stephen, who just smiled into Tony's messed-up hair.

"It'll be okay, just don't tell him anything," Stephen chuckled, walking over to the couch and lying down, Tony still on top of him.

"You know, Stephen, some things are just too good to keep to yourself, so it's gonna be whoever asks, or maybe Friday," Tony giggled, making Stephen bop him on the head and kiss him.


	10. It'll Be Fun, They Said

Cheesy date idea? Check.

Cheesy boyfriend? Check.

Hatred of cheese, so Stephen pays the people to take it off both hamburgers? Check.

Walking through the fairy-light-lit field, Stephen couldn't stop smiling at Tony, who couldn't stop smiling at Stephen.

"What do you think the odds are I can win that?" Tony asked, pointing to a bear at one of the prize booths.

"Truthfully, or is this supportive boyfriend time?" Stephen snickered, earning a slap, and chasing after Tony as he went over to play the game. "Oh, come on, Tony. You have shaky hands, and you suck at darts. What makes you think you can win this?" Stephen chuckled, setting his hands on the tinier man's shoulders.

"Fuck off, Stephen, I'm gonna win it," Tony laughed, throwing one and missing by a long shot.

"Four darts left, you're not gonna hit the string," Stephen crossed his arms, watching Tony miss again.

"Your commentary is definitely helping, asshole," Tony grumbled, prompting Stephen to walk over and pick him up, making him taller and giving him a better angle. He still missed. "Fuck, I nearly got it that time," he whined, letting Stephen hand him another.

"You did not. This is your last shot, make it count," Stephen said, chuckling. Tony threw and just missed, so he jumped out of Stephen's arms and huffed.

"Oh, hey, there's one more!" Tony said, walking over to pick it up, but Stephen snatched it and held it above his head. 

"No, this one's for me," he squinted slightly, and threw the dart, hitting the string and making the big teddy bear fall to the ground, "to make you win." Stephen grinned, handing Tony the prize.

"How the fuck did you do that in one shot?" Tony demanded.

"Basic trajectory physics, -- which you have, -- but I'm a neurosurgeon. I have precision. You most definitely do not," Stephen chuckled, ruffling Tony's hair. Who just smiled and hugged the bear, following Stephen over to the Ferris wheel, buying cotton candy at the gate, getting in an open-roof spot. Smiling dumbly at Tony, Stephen couldn't help but feel like the luckiest man in the whole damn world.

"Something on your mind, doc?" Tony smiled sweetly.

"You," Stephen admitted, making Tony blush.

"Ugh, you're such a sap," the playboy groaned, but smiled and walked across the bucket to sit in Stephen's lap. Turning his head over his shoulder to kiss him, Tony smiled into it, he couldn't be happier. "You know something, Stephen?"

"I know a few things, what specifically?" Stephen muttered, biting at Tony's earlobe tenderly. Tony hummed happily, and took a minute to respond.

"I'm impossibly glad that I get to have you," Tony sighed, relaxing. Stephen smiled.

"You're absolutely perfect," he commented, kissing him again as they reached the top of the Ferris wheel.

"Not even close, you know that," Tony laughed, tapping his arc reactor through his shirt.

"See, I'm doing what I can to not think about it," Stephen smirked.

"Yeah, but you sure weren't going out of your way to do that last night, you freak," Tony grinned, making Stephen duck his head, blushing brighter than the cheesy lights on the ride. "Honestly, what's with that tongue of yours? You kept l-" Tony rolled his eyes and groaned after earning two fingers pushed into his mouth and holding his tongue down firmly. "Ugh, c'm'n!" he whined.

"Not a word out of you, pretty boy," Stephen warned raising his eyebrows, and replacing his fingers with cotton candy, which left Tony happily munching the sugary wisps. "You're too cute to say things like that," Stephen laughed, kissing the corner of Tony's mouth to lick off the cotton candy stuck there, which made Tony laugh and blush.

"You're too cute to even think things like that, I'm the one with the messed-up brain," Tony giggled, tapping Stephen's nose sweetly.

"Then it's a damn good thing you're going out with a neurosurgeon, right?" the doctor laughed, hugging Tony and biting off a piece of the cotton candy, laughing harder when Tony nibbled off the excess fluff Stephen couldn't fit in his mouth.

"Sure is," Sighing, Stephen just held him closer and rocked slightly, enjoying the view of all the lights. Tony didn't like the lights after feeling trapped in them for so long, and so he just looked at the prettiest sight around; Stephen.

He loved everything about him, truthfully. His relaxed expression and sparkling but darkly glazed eyes, giving him a smart look. His jaw was defined, and his facial hair nicely framed his soft, but chapped up lips. Truth be told, he always looked worn, but collected, and his hands were warm as they wrapped around Tony's shoulders, the taller boy's breath light and slow, calm and gentle. He looked and acted like a doctor in his tiniest mannerisms, and it always made Tony smile. Plus, he loved the care Stephen put into everything and everyone after all the scary shit he'd been through.

"What?" Stephen asked suddenly.

"Bah- uh- um... nothing," Tony stammered, just hugging Stephen tighter. Stephen smiled.

"Well, what were you thinking about?" Stephen mumbled, biting the tip of Tony's ear, who shuddered pleasantly.

"Y- you," he admitted, going about as red as the paint in the Ferris wheel car. Stephen grinned against the side of Tony's head, making the shorter boy shiver and adjust himself on the doctor's lap.

"Yeah? Good thoughts, I hope," Stephen muttered.

"Oh, definitely," Tony giggled, fondly reaching up and touching the side of Stephen's face, smiling when the taller boy nuzzled into his hand like a cat. 

"Mmm..." Stephen hummed happily, resisting his urge to nip at Tony's fingers playfully, settling instead just to flick his tongue out against Tony's cheek, making the brunette sit at high attention.

"Th- that's not fair, you can't do that here!" Tony whined, tugging on Stephen's collar, annoyed.

"Then you're coming home with me," Stephen whispered, chest vibrating lowly as he leaned in closely.

"I'm upset that you even doubted it, Stephen," Tony giggled, putting a large poof of cotton candy in his mouth and tugging on the taller boy's hair until he was low enough to kiss, cotton candy and all. Laughing into the sugary kiss, Stephen pick up his boyfriend, swaying as he stood in the bucket and gently moving his lips. Tony just held on tight, realizing the one thing that he had been missing his entire life as a genius, entrepreneur, playboy, magnificent guy;

Stephen.

And thank god, he had Stephen now.


	11. Looking Up

Bliss.

Bliss was probably the only word for what Stephen was feeling. Everything was good now. No more of okay, no more of fine, no more of laughing brokenly and saying that life was adequate, because when Peter saw Stephen napping on the couch in the complex, Stephen had no problem waking up, and telling Peter that his life was good. Peter cocked his head, and made a comment about how Stephen always seemed upset, though. Stephen just smiled, and said,

"Yeah. But things are looking up," Stephen grinned.

"Well, that's good. I'm pretty good myself, wanna know why?" Peter smiled kindly.

"Shoot,"

"Because Tony is really happy, and I think I have you to thank for that, truthfully," Peter laughed, watching Stephen's face get red. "No, I mean it! He's always laughing and grinning now, he didn't do that before. You've made his life so much brighter, and he goes to bed early now, muttering about how you'll kill him if he doesn't," Peter smiled, "he's happier. And you made him that way. I could make him smile, but you make him happy. And he cares about you a lot, I just thought you should know. I also get that I overreacted earlier and all, -- it was totally warranted though, -- but I just wanted to let you know that I'm not mad. I'm glad you're making his life better. That said, if you have intention of breaking his heart, I'll strangle you blue. Got it?" Peter grinned, hanging upside-down from the ceiling now. 

"I'd never do that, not in any timeline would I hurt Tony," Stephen chuckled, levitating into an upside-down position to grin crookedly at Peter, "though, there is a timeline where he kills me... four timelines... but not this one, and I'll do anything to keep him happy," he reached out and ruffled Peter's hair, "and I'll take him home with me instead," Stephen winked, making Peter glare and roll his eyes. "I'm just messing with you. I care about him lots, though. I won't do anything, I promise," Stephen vowed, holding out his little finger.

"...you're nearly a man of forty, and you're making me a pinkie promise?" Pete giggled incredulously, but Stephen just nodded with an entirely serious expression.

"I am. It's unbreakable," the doctor cocked a brow, making Peter laugh and wrap his finger around Stephen's.

"Man, you're awesome! I'm so glad papa-" he coughed, "Mr. Stark fell for you!" Peter grinned, web-slinging and back-flipping his way out of the room. Stephen landed on his feet and smiled after the kid, heart warm. He assumed Peter dashed off because he didn't wanna be asked questions about saying 'papa', but it didn't matter to Stephen.

He had the kid's approval, and Peter was the last barrier. 

The only thing he had to push through to get to Tony was Peter.

And now...

Well, things were definitely, definitely, definitely looking up.


	12. Attached

"Okay, bye, kiddo," Tony laughed, giving Peter a warm hug and patting his backpack as the little brunette ran out the door, grinning hugely over his shoulder.

"Bye, papa!" Peter giggled, jumping high in the air and doing a front flip before jogging off to the bus stop. Tony smiled after him, appreciating his new, more domestic life. Peter had called him 'papa' on accident, and Tony LOVED it. Acknowledging Tony's paternal role in his life was important to Peter, and seen as Tony hadn't flipped out, things were pretty damn good. Turning around, Tony smiled dumbly at a frizzy-haired Stephen in just boxers and a big sweatshirt.

"Domesticity suits you, darling," Stephen commented, kissing the side of Tony's mouth and curling his arms around the shorter man's waist.

"I'm not wholly domestic," Tony whined, putting one hand on top of Stephen's arm and the other on the doctor's cheek.

"Yeah, right. You just had the father/son exchange with Peter, who you're sending to school, and your boyfriend is now hugging you from behind, still ugly from just waking up, giving you good morning kisses. Does it get more domestic?" Stephen squinted, laughing.

"You make me feel old, Stephen," Tony groaned, turning around in Stephen's arms to kiss his long, slow, and passionately. 

"Trust me, nothing's old when you've looked billions of years into the future. We're just kids," Stephen muttered, biting Tony's bottom lip affectionately.

"Ugh, you bother me. Come on, get your magical ass into the kitchen, I'll make breakfast," Tony chuckled, slipping out of the wizard's grasp. Stephen huffed, following him sleepily into the kitchen.

"I'm still proud of you for being healthy, you know," Stephen muttered, sitting down at the island. Tony blushed, and smiled.

"Thanks!" he chirped, putting chocolate chip waffles in the toaster.

"No, I mean it," Stephen smiled tiredly, brushing Tony's hair out of his eyes, making Tony go redder.

"St- stop, we have to eat," Tony muttered half-heartedly, looking away. 

"Like hell we do, unplug that toaster," Stephen cocked a brow, walking over. Tony scrambled to obey, immediately jumping into Stephen's arms, and earning a happy hum from the taller boy. Stephen laughed into the kiss, pushing Tony up against the wall.

 

 

 

Laughing, Stephen transferred his bags to his left hand and intertwined his right one with Tony's left. Tony grinned, kissing his cheek, until his phone went off. Rolling his eyes, he chuckled.

"Give me a second, dear. Tony Stark, who is this?" Tony's smile slowly faded. "Sure, why are you calling?" He furrowed his brow, before looking concerned. "Jesus! Is he alright?" he bit his lip, and Stephen moved an arm around his boyfriend's shoulders. "Well, okay, yeah, I'll be there soon, tell him. Yeah okay. Bye," hanging up, Tony grabbed Stephen's hand again and started speed-walking towards the exit of the mall.

"What's the matter?" Stephen asked, taking huge strides to keep in line. 

"I guess some kid punched Peter, or something," Tony explained, trying to cool himself down. 

"Okay, I'll drive then, you just have to stay calm," Stephen cooed, setting a gentle hand on Tony's shaking knee and driving to the school. 

"How badly can I damage a high schooler without getting sent to jail?" Tony deadpanned, balling his hands into fists.

"No, Tony," Stephen sighed, grabbing Tony's hand and kissing his knuckles.

 

 

 

The two got out of the car, and Stephen pinned Tony's shaking hands to his sides with a firm arm around the smaller man's waist. Walking through the door, Stephen struggled to keep a grip on his boyfriend, but managed to hold him fairly still. Stephen pushed open the door to the office, and Peter looked up.

"Papa?" he asked, cheek cut and swollen, eye mostly bruised, and lip bleeding profusely. Tony wriggled out of Stephen's grip and ran over. 

"Peter, what happened?" Tony demanded, going soft as he ran to his boy.

"W- well this bully, Hector, w- was p- punching this freshman, an- and I pulled the kid out of there, b- but he started punching me, a- and I f- forgot I can lift like... ten tons, and so I- I punched him too hard and h- he flew back, an- and I panicked, and al- all his friends g- ganged up on me, and I didn't kn- know what to do, papa!" Peter sobbed. "I di- didn't wanna h- hurt anyone else..." he choked, tears flowing over his scraped up cheeks.

"I'll kill a motherfucker," Tony growled, but Stephen flicked him between the eyes and did his doctor once-over of Peter, gently examining him.

"You're okay, you're o-" Stephen cocked a brow. "How did you manage to break a rib?" he muttered incredulously, carefully tapping Peter's sternum, searching for the offending bone.

"I broke a rib!?" Peter half-shouted, panic settling into his face. Stephen realized his mistake, his protective side truly kicking in, and wrapped caring arms tightly around Peter's shoulders, calming him considerably.

"Hey, hey, don't worry, you heal super fast, remember? You're fine, Peter," Strange hushed, rocking the younger brunette, and petting his hair soothingly. "You'll be alright. We're so proud of you, Peter. Your papa and I are so proud, you did such an amazing thing," he mumbled, Peter going sleepily slack in his arms. He smiled fondly, and draped his cloak over the kid's shaking shoulders, and ruffled Peter's hair as the sentient fabric gave Peter a soft hug, the collar gently wiping his tears, making the kid giggle softly.

"Th- thanks," Peter sighed, snuggling into the cloak.

"Stephen's right, kiddo. We're so, so proud of you, you're such an amazing kid, so great, so perfect. You're so brave, and Stephen and I are very proud of you for being so courageous and kind. You're gonna do awesome things kid, and I couldn't be prouder of you," Tony smiled, his heart soft after watching Stephen tend to Peter so sweetly.

"Thank you Papa, th- thanks Mr. Strange," the kid muttered, tears still falling down his cheeks. 

"Doctor," Stephen grumbled, but didn't press it, cautiously examining the wounds on Peter's face. "You don't look too bad, but we should probably take you home," he said, going to scoop up Peter bridal style, cradling him carefully as Tony checked them out of the building. "Tony, I'll drive, you take care of Peter," he commanded, putting Peter in the backseat, closing the door as Tony crawled in next to Peter, petting his hair fondly, and quietly reassuring Peter about what a brave and amazing kid he was. 

Peter smiled and curled up into Tony's side, who smiled and closed his eyes. Stephen watched this happen through the rear view mirror, and his heart couldn't help but just melt.

He loved their little family. 

So what?

...

So he'd defend them with his life, actually.

Smiling dumbly at the Stark boys, Stephen paused at a red light.

He was attached to them. Overly so. Daresay, he loved them.


	13. The Hellhounds

Calming Tony down was a sport, for sure. Gently massaging Tony's shoulders, Stephen continued to whisper soft affirmations that everyone was okay, and nothing was Tony's fault, and that it was just a stupid childhood squabble, and that Stephen would personally help him whip extra ass of whatever villain next tried to hurt Peter before sending them to SHIELD. Tony eventually curled up in between Stephen's legs, falling asleep with his face pushed into the younger boy's thigh. 

Stephen smiled absently, though he still felt sick. Definitely lovesick for the man he was snuggling, but closer to hangover sick. Sighing, he leaned his head back, and let his conscious fade from the physical realm, sitting up in the astral plain. Looking around, his blood ran cold.

"Shit, no," he hissed, leaping to his feet. Behind him, time was fraying at the edges, and fire licked at the seam. "Oh, god. No, no, no..." he muttered, slinking over. Peering through the gap, he saw the amalgamations. Huge wolves of... anti-matter? Vacuum? Emptiness, really. Their flaming forms nipping at the continuum, loud, vacant howls echoing along the expanse of time. It was getting too late to stop, and he had to do something. Of course, he couldn't get a good angle from here...

Appearing back in the physical realm, exhausted, Stephen slipped out from under Tony, planting kisses on the billionaire's forehead to keep him from waking up, and tucked him in. Scribbling his whereabouts, an apology, and goodnight wishes on a sticky note, he walked out into the hallway where Peter sat on the floor, drawing in his sketchbook and nursing a lemonade.

"Hey, Mr. Dr. Strange," he smiled brightly, "where are you goin'?" he stood up and cocked his head like a curious dog.

"I'm off to go save the world, buddy," Stephen smiled, leaning down to kiss Peter's hair, "when he wakes up, tell your papa I won't be long, just have to fix the universe as we know it," the wizard chuckled, making Peter laugh and grin. Peter jumped and gave him a hug around the waist, which literally made Stephen's heart melt. He carefully hugged back, his cloak hugging too.

"Okay, bye-bye, da-" Peter caught himself. "doctor!" Stephen smiled, and with a whoosh of his cape, he was gone. 

Appearing back on Bleeker Street, Stephen walked into the library, where Wong looked at him, concerned.

"I know, Wong," Stephen rolled his eyes, grabbing a couple books and climbing on top of one of the shelves for focus. Opening them both up and glaring at the pages, he closed his eyes and sat up in the astral realm again, before crawling over to the seam. The hell-hounds continued to bark, and he felt sick. Cursing, he pulled the cape closer around himself and nyoomed over the heads of the frothing abnormalities, dashing into the future. Of course, he made a mistake. Crouching on the side of the wall, he sidled along the barrier, carefully skirting Earth's future, as that included the least amount of spoilers, he winced as the hounds continued to nip at his feet, until one sank it's disgusting teeth into his leg, yanking him down, down, down...

Feeling his chest get tighter and tighter, Stephen didn't call for help. He just called for Tony. But he didn't come. So accepting defeat, Stephen just whispered his lovers name one last time until he couldn't breathe, and just kept tumbling into the black.


	14. What the Past Held, What the Future Holds

He sat up. In a sunset-lit field of daisies, he felt calmer now, though still sick. It was his valley, his safe space. He used to go there when he was a kid, and he still did sometimes now. It was a nice place, truly. He brushed his hair from his face, and looked around. Suddenly, something felt wrong, and panic shot up through his bones, and he was dragged through the floor again, before landing ungracefully on his back.

"Ow, f- fuck," he groaned, standing up. Hearing the barking behind him, he just started to run through the timeline. Wait. It was HIS timeline. Oh no, he had promised himself he wouldn't do this again.

Stephen couldn't help but look around as he ran for his life. He watched himself grow up, tears pricking at his eyes as he watched himself get older, go through middle school, realize his sexuality, get into Yale, graduate, running on coffee and internal rage, before calming down, and getting calmer, and losing that fire, mostly. He smiled hollowly, watching himself perform thousands and thousands of surgeries, laughing at his stupid coworkers. Watched himself turn 40, then 41, then build himself back up from nothing with a belief in magic, and then...

Then he watched himself meet Tony. If he weren't running away from certain death, he would've meandered through his past, appreciating it. But he couldn't, so instead, he just bolted, his eyes trained on memories of big battles, sacrificing himself and half the universe for Tony, taking care of everyone in the soul stone, escaping, and his first order of business to smile at Tony, who immediately began sobbing his eyes out on his knees, and staring at Stephen with the sorriest expression the world had ever seen. The doctor watched Tony beg and plead on his knees, crying, until Stephen knelt, took a step forward, and hugged him back, holding onto him like the world would collapse again if he didn't.

He stared at the murals on the wall, watched himself and Tony hopelessly flirt, go on a couple dates, have fun, enjoy each other's company, take care of Peter, and watched the smiles and laughter spiral around him, as his cloak brushed tears from his eyes, making Stephen take a deep breath and keep running, keep running, keep running. 

"Stop! Stop, stop, stop!" Stephen choked, turning around to backpedal away from the frothing beasts, drool flying off their faces, ugh. They didn't stop. Turning back around, Stephen crossed the present line. "No, no, no..." he tugged angrily at his own hair, running with his head down. "No!" He had promised himself he wouldn't look ahead anymore. He'd live life as it happened, instead of sitting on knowledge as everyone else lived around him, while he already understood the end, the beginning, and everything in between. He had vowed he wouldn't do it again, so he covered his eyes and kept running, cloak flapping out behind him, until he heard it. 

Stephen had also made another promise to himself, and it was that he'd never tell anyone he loved them unless he was sure he did. Which was why he was rocked to his core, just passing the present line, when he heard his own voice speak the words "I love you,"

I love you. He would've looked up, but it was too late when he opened his eyes, and was instead met with what was best described as domestic bliss. Sitting in a kitchen, making pancakes for Peter and Tony, giving them both kisses on the cheek before going to work.

More dates, more getting the check, more happiness, more smiles, more laughs, Stephen watched himself get down on one knee and propose to Tony, the tears back in his eyes as he ran away from the barking wolves behind him. He coughed up tears as he gasped for his breath, the cloak cleaning his cheeks again as he continued to run, blue eyes flashing as he watched himself get married, him in a black suit and Tony in a white one, the two of them smiling hugely as Peter handed them the rings, and Stephen nearly tripped watching the two of them tie the knot, Stephen carrying Tony out of the church bridal style, the two of them laughing as they were showered with flower petals, swaying happily to their first dance, and then going home.

He saw him and Tony cry as they sent Peter, -- also crying, -- to college, but smiling as they took daily facetime calls with him, where Peter would go on long theatrical rants about his day, which always made Tony and Stephen laugh. They were a happy, perfect family.

Stephen let the sound dogs barking disappear as he watched himself take Tony to the valley, his favorite place. He'd ran past it hundreds of times already, but it was always just him. The future-Stephen held Tony's hands, kissing him gently and softly, and the two of them both smiled into it, laughing quietly. Stephen panicked, and felt electricity jump out of him from all sides, and he wheeled around. Eyes glowing that pretty blue-green, he moved his hands rhythmically. 

Boom, boom, whoosh! Stephen planted his feet, turning to face the wolves. Still chasing hungrily after him, they were met with conjured blades, forces, manipulators. Stephen took them out one by one, the tear closing above him slightly for each amalgamate he killed. When they wolves were all gone, he walked over to where he and Tony were sitting in the valley, slowly rolling the time. 

"I've never been more thankful for anything than I am for you," future-Tony admitted, brushing the hair from future-Stephen's face.

"I've never loved anyone else," future-Stephen offered, kissing his husband again.

"You make me immeasurably happy, Stephen," future-Tony chuckled, pushing future-Stephen back into the bed of tulips and wildflowers, kissing him sweetly.

"I love you," Stephen and future-Stephen whispered in unison. Stephen was testing how the words tasted on his tongue, and future-Stephen was opening his heart's contents to the playboy. Stephen, in real time, began to sob, sinking to his knees, sitting in this broken piece of time.

"I- I don't deserve him," Stephen told himself, for what had to be the fiftieth time that week, and the millionth that year. "He can't l- love me, I'm f- fucking worthless," he sobbed into the field of flowers, guilt and sorriness gnawing unforgivingly at his stomach. He choked on his tears, and as he doubled over and cried more, he knocked a new scene into frame. A frozen moment appeared, and Stephen blinked his tears away, with help from his cloak.

In this one perfect moment before him, Stephen saw himself asleep in Tony's lap, face resting on his thighs, and realized that Tony could love him, it seemed. Tony wore The Expression™, his eyes were soft and caring and his face was warm, and his chocolate eyes shone brightly instead of being dark and coffee, scared and dejected. He looked perfect. He looked in love.

In love with Stephen. Unpausing the moment, Stephen watched Tony smile absently.

"I love you," Tony whispered, even though Stephen couldn't hear him. "You've made everything so much better. I was cold, and alone, tired and anxious. And... I don't know how you did it, actually. I hate not knowing, always have, but with you..." he laughed softly, pouring his emotions to the sleeping man, gently caressing Stephen's scarred cheeks. "It's almost rewarding not to know, and then be surprised by the man I love more than any other, you know? I fell in love with you, and when you gave yourself away for me, I just couldn't forgive myself. But I have you here again, and I promise, I promise, I'll never let anything take you every again. You just make me feel so fucking good, there's no way to explain it. My heart just stops when you smile, and I used to have quips to complements, and I knew how to shrug off what people say about me, but you just wore me down, so much. And it made me happier, because I love being weak for you. You always know just what to say or do in any situation, and I've always loved that about you, and how you can solve literally any problem except for how to keep that floof of hair out of your face. God, Stephen, I just... I just love you, so, so, so much. More than anything else. And you've been so good to me and the kid, and you're just such an angel, such a great person, and I don't know how you fell in love with a fuck-up like me, a moron without a clue, but you did, and fucking hell, I've never been more thankful for anything than I am for you deciding to love me, a broken piece of garbage," Stephen wished he could reach out and hug that future, and promise Tony he was worth all of that love, and felt tears appearing in his eyes again as just sat and watched. "And I know you'd probably go on some rant about how special or perfect I am, but I'm not. I'm really, really not, Stephen. But dammit, you make me feel perfect, and you make me feel special, and you make me feel loved, and I feared I'd never get that, truly. You just... you make me happy. And... I love you. I love you, so so so much," Tony muttered fondly. Stephen brushed the tears from his face again. He stood up and rolled his shoulders, smiling softly as his cape fluttered happily. He got ready to finish what he'd started, staring down the future. 

"I love you too," he said, before dashing down the timeline.


	15. Swipe, Dodge, Parry, Shoot, Repeat

Boom, boom, whoosh!

"What are you, anyway?" Stephen's disembodied voice asked, making the large, flaming creature spin confusedly. 

"The end of time," the creature snarled in a thousand different voices, looking around.

"Mmm, that's fun. Wanna guess what I am?" Stephen crossed his legs and arms, floating around in the blindspot of the horrid creature. 

"No," the wolf growled, getting into a pounce position.

"Oh. Well then I'll just tell you. I'm the keeper of time, I even have the stone," Stephen shrugged, silently hovering over the amalgamate's back and waiting for the right moment.

"You're what?" the creature hissed.

"Your worst nightmare, basically," Stephen chuckled, before dropping onto the wolf's head. Slashing wildly at its back and neck, holding on for dear life as he blindly swung his weapons at the beast, getting thrashed about as his brain jumped around in his skull. Taking one last swipe, he was thrown off, groaning unhappily as he met the floor.

"I have no worst nightmare," the beast insisted, reaching for Stephen with its huge claws. Stephen jumped, narrowly missing getting opened up like a letter.

"You have me," Stephen replied, dodging another swipe and taking another swing at the creature. 

"In my hands, yes," the beast replied, bringing its talons straight down on Stephen. Summoning a shield, the wizard pushed it back, grunting with exertion as he struggled.

"I belong to no one," Stephen yelped, parrying another attack and rolling away from the flaming wolf.

"You belong to Stark," the amalgamate reminded him. Ooh, low blow. But not exactly correct, if you think about it. Aiming a concentrated shot at the wolf's crown, Stephen smirked. 

"No," he sighed, "Tony belongs to me," Stephen let go, his blast hitting the creature square between the eyes, making it stomp around dizzily.

Stephen took another swipe at it's snout, making the flame roar in agony.

The nightmare raised a claw in retaliation, but Stephen dodged it, jumping away.

He parried a whip of the wolf's tail, panting heavily now.

Taking the moment into his own hands, he fired another shot right into the amalgamate's face, relishing the moment as the wolf stuttered and crumbled into dust. 

Falling to his knees, Stephen gasped for breath as the Seal of Time zipped together above him. Gathering himself again, the doctor's eyes shot open, and he fell off the bookshelf. Wong looked over, wincing as the fall made a noise like bones cracking.

That'll leave a mark.


	16. What Needs To Be Said

"Strange," Wong helped Stephen up, frowning at the phantom cuts on his cheeks. "it's gone, yes?"

"It's gone, Beyonce," Stephen and Wong both chuckled, the doctor immediately going to check his watch. Frozen. Awh, fuck, he'll have to make Tony fix it again. "How long has it been? What time is it?" Wong frowned.

"Fourteen hours. It's five in the morning," Wong explained. 

"Yeah, yeah, that's great, I have to go," Stephen waved, running out the door, cloak flying out behind him as he ran faster than he ever had, faster than he had when being chased by wolves, even. He ran and ran and ran, before landing at the door. He was so nervous, he floated off the ground slightly, knocking three times, gathering his breath. It took a minute, but the door swung open anyway. Tony answered.

His hair was a mess, clearly from just getting out of bed. A little bit of drool was stuck to his cheek, and his eyes were tired, but confused and slightly alight. God, his eyes were so beautiful. He was so beautiful. In a split-second, Stephen trailed his eyes down Tony's defined collar bone, appreciating the lack of shirt going on. Skipping over the main event, his mouth twitched as he examined the bunny slippers Tony was wearing, and the way his sweatpan- Wait. The way STEPHEN'S sweatpants were a little too big for him, falling over his ankles. For the same reason, the pants were a little low on the waist, kindly showcasing the v-shaped muscle that his full hips nicely framed. His abs weren't too defined, barely there actually, just a soft rippling of toned muscle in the man's abdomen. Eyes flitting up to his chest, Stephen took in the thin, white scar where Stephen had patched him up, invisible to anyone not searching for it, and the rest of the scars on Tony's tanned, gorgeous chest. Following those stretched out scars with his electric blue and green eyes, Stephen stared at the arc reactor, in all of it's glowing, scratched, awful, disgusting, horribly-done, awfully-placed glory, and then just blinked at Tony as whole. Simply, he looked like a tired, broken, awful mess. He looked like PTSD and sleep deprivation, he looked like hell. But to Stephen? He was beautiful, he was lovely, he was absolutely perfect. Taking a mental deep breath, -- his real lungs wouldn't accept any air, -- he admitted what he needed to say, the words that had been clawing at his throat since he realized he meant them, and staring down a sleepy Tony Stark straight in the face, Stephen let go of his walls, all of that isolation, and just let the words fall off his tongue, and welcomed the reality of that perfect future.

"I love you."


	17. ~~~EPILOGUE: BETTER~~~

"Bye, Papa! Bye, Dad!" Peter grinned over his shoulder, smiling at his fathers before dashing out the door. They both called out various ways to say farewell, before turning back to each other. Stephen sighed, nipping tenderly at his husband's collar bone.

"Babe, stop!" Tony whined, doing nothing to make the younger cease, but Stephen relented anyway. "You know, I was secretly hoping you wouldn't stop," he explained, blushing despite himself.

"I know," Stephen grinned, pulling him closer and kissing his cheeks. The happy moment fading into content, comfortable silence, Stephen distractedly began tracing the scars on Tony's chest, and the rim of the arc reactor, which happily buzzed.

"My god, you're obsessed," Tony chuckled, making Stephen whimper loudly.

"I'm sorry, okay! It's just... nngghh... You're perfect, every inch of you, except for just that..." Stephen buried his face in Tony's hair, making the shorter man smile.

"I'm not, but it's alright, darling. You know I don't mind," Tony assured him, tenderly kissing Stephen's neck. The ravenette shivered pleasurably, moving down to connect his lips with Tony's. The playboy tasted distinctly of peppermint and toffees, which made Stephen laugh into the kiss. "What?" Tony huffed, pulling back, but still grinning.

"You're yummy, is all," Stephen smiled, picking up Tony's hand and kissing the knuckles, before carefully examining Tony's wedding and engagement ring and comparing them to his own wedding band. Diamonds suited Tony better. "You're also all mine," Stephen remarked. "Imagine that. Taming Tony Stark, and I'm the lucky man that did it. The luckiest man in the world, I have you," the doctor muttered, looking at Tony through his eyelashes.

"Mmm, thanks," Tony mumbled, blushing. "I am yours, that much is definitely true," Gently setting his husband's hand back down, Stephen rested his head on his lover's chest, appreciating the rhythmic rise and fall of Tony's deep breaths, and the soft thumping and whirring of Tony's real heart, and Tony's arc reactor.

"All mine," Stephen agreed, appreciating the warmth of his husband, sweetly kissing at Tony's neck and chest.

"All yours," Tony admitted, blushing. "I belong to you," the billionaire muttered, smiling under Stephen's loving touch and gaze. 

"I love you, Tony," Stephen said, running his fingers over the scars again. God, he was so in love with him, everything about him, such a perfect, amazing man, and heaven help them all, Tony belonged to him, all his. Oh, could his life be better!?

"I love you too, Stephen," Tony smiled, giggling softly to himself.

There are a lot of problems with having a fake heart.

1\. It skips revolutions when it's in love.

2\. It makes your surgeon husband wish he could pull out his brain.

3\. Love is so much harder to find, it's so much harder to find someone who would accept you for that flaw. But whn you find the one, you know he loves you.

 

There are a lot of problems with having a real heart.

1\. It skips beats when it falls in love.

2\. It makes you feel dizzy when your stupidly attractive husband does something cute.

3\. Love is hard to stay out of, but god, once you fall, you fall hard. You fall completely in love with everything about them, and they make you happier than you even thought you could be.

Stephen ran gentle hands over the dotted chest, loving and appreciating every dent, scar, tear, and things that, -- to anyone other than himself, -- would be horrendous. And even though the surgeon in him wanted to claw his eyes out, he couldn't help but love how strong Tony was for going through all of that, for enduring so much pain. And so, he loved each and every scar, before carefully placing his hand on top of the arc reactor, making both Tony and the heart hum happily. Stephen entered a quiet and happy headspace, so in love with Tony, before quietly whispering out...

"I could've done so much better." 

Tony reached down to kiss him, before smiling softly.

"I know."

THE END


End file.
